Celebrating the Centennial of West Side Story and Wonderful Town Composer Leonard Bernstein

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Classic Arts Features Celebrating the Centennial of West Side Story and Wonderful Town Composer Leonard Bernstein The celebratory performances of the legendary Tony-winning composer鈥檚 work kick off September 19.

By Paul Horsley

September 17, 2017

Throughout history, the artists who nudge things forward are the 鈥渟ynthesizers,鈥� the ones who bring together seemingly disparate styles to form something startlingly new. In music, Mozart fused styles he absorbed during his early travels through Italy, France, England, and German-speaking lands. Later, the Beatles gathered elements of postwar restlessness, American blues, and (thanks to the symphonically trained George Martin) classical traditions to create sounds we鈥檇 never heard before.

Leonard Bernstein, whose 100th birthday in 2018 is being cheered worldwide, was the type of artist who鈥攍ike Mozart or the bands of the British invasion鈥攖ook a sweeping look at everything around him and proceeded to place a personal stamp on all he touched. For in addition to his almost unequaled prowess as a conductor and (to some extent) pianist, Bernstein the composer found ways to fuse classical, jazz, liturgical traditions, and the tuneful exuberance of Tin Pan Alley to forge a distinctly American style of music that was utterly new and fresh.

During the 2017-2018 season The Philadelphia Orchestra and Music Director Yannick N茅zet-S茅guin pay homage to the composer-conductor with a commemoration that includes music from a wide range of genres and styles as well as works by other composers that help put Bernstein鈥檚 music in perspective. The celebration strives to be as all-encompassing as Bernstein himself, with a series of concert works throughout the season鈥攐rchestral suites from his only film score, On the Waterfront (September 19 and October 5), and West Side Story (October 5); the Serenade featuring violinist Hilary Hahn (December 7鈥�10); the Second Symphony (鈥淎ge of Anxiety鈥�) with pianist Jean-Yves Thibaudet (March 16鈥�18); and the Chichester Psalms (April 5鈥�10)鈥攊n addition to a concert performance of West Side Story (October 12鈥�15), a European tour featuring Bernstein鈥檚 music, and a Family Concert hosted by the composer鈥檚 daughter Jamie (February 3). The latter is an homage to the conductor whose Young People鈥檚 Concerts ushered in a new approach to inspiring children鈥檚 interest in music: Jamie Bernstein will guide young people and their families through some of her father鈥檚 works, including the ballet Fancy Free and the Overture to the operetta Candide.

To some extent the Orchestra鈥檚 Bernstein commemoration already began during the 2014鈥�2015 season, and it will continue through at least the 2018鈥�2019 season. 鈥淚t all started with Bernstein鈥檚 Mass, which we did a few years ago,鈥� said Yannick of the moment that began his own journey with the composer. 鈥淭his was such an important event, and where I fell in love with his music. So we are continuing the exploration of the vocal music with one of his masterpieces 鈥� which is West Side Story. It will be a rare occasion and opportunity to hear it really complete, every note that he wrote for that score, in a rare concert performance.

鈥淲e鈥檒l also have choral music, the Chichester Psalms, and we鈥檙e going to continue the complete symphony cycle, which is now featuring the Second Symphony 鈥� which is also like a piano concerto.鈥� The performances of the Second are part of a multi-season look at the composer鈥檚 symphonies, which began this past May with the First and concludes in 2018鈥�2019 with the Third (鈥淜addish鈥�).

One of the most brilliant music minds that America has produced, Leonard Bernstein (born August 25, 1918) distinguished himself through the breadth of his gifts鈥攁s a pianist, conductor, composer, and educator. He was the first American-born music director of the New York Philharmonic and the first American to rise to prominence on the podiums of several international orchestras. 鈥淗e was unrelenting in his dedication and doggedly devoted to uncovering the composer鈥檚 true intent,鈥� writes Baltimore Symphony Music Director Marin Alsop, a Bernstein student. 鈥淭his willingness and desire to re-examine every piece of music, to bring a fresh approach and new insights to every performance of a work, set Bernstein apart from everyone else.鈥�

As a composer Bernstein shook the very foundations of both opera and the Broadway musical with theatre works that fused elements of both genres鈥�West Side Story, On the Town, Candide. At the same time he became one of the first American composers to bring popular elements into 鈥渟erious鈥� symphonic works. This was perhaps a natural outgrowth of his early intellectual curiosity, which would ultimately embrace everything from the new energy of jazz and Broadway and the Old World sensibilities he learned at Harvard University and Philadelphia鈥檚 Curtis Institute of Music.

His father, Samuel, was a Ukrainian immigrant who hoped his son would take over the family鈥檚 beauty-supply business in Lawrence, Massachusetts鈥攖hough neither he nor Leonard鈥檚 mother, Jennie, actively discouraged the boy鈥檚 path as soon as his keen gifts for music became evident.

At Harvard the young Bernstein studied with advocates of centuries-old principles of harmony and counterpoint, especially Edward Burlingame Hill and Walter Piston. The latter鈥檚 rigorous approach to musical texture would stay with Bernstein through his life. At Curtis he studied piano with Isabelle Vengerova, composition with Randall Thompson, and conducting with Fritz Reiner. Though some of Bernstein鈥檚 biographers have described his early experiences in Philadelphia as somewhat trying, there was no question that his Curtis education鈥攁nd especially his contact with Reiner, who left an indelible impression鈥攚as instrumental in propelling his career forward. At the Tanglewood Music Center he became a prot茅g茅 of Serge Koussevitzsky, who remained a Bernstein advocate for many years and whose musicianship left a deep mark on the young conductor鈥檚 world-view.

Completing his formal education in 1942, Bernstein worked for a music publisher arranging and transcribing popular tunes for publication as sheet music. It was during this time (on November 14, 1943) that he was called upon, at late notice, to fill in for Bruno Walter conducting the New York Philharmonic. Having just been appointed assistant conductor of the Philharmonic by Artur Rodzinski earlier that season, Bernstein 鈥渨ent through the ordeal with no signs of strain or nervousness,鈥� according to an article on the front page of the New York Times the following day.

In the coming years Bernstein would conduct a wide range of other orchestras, especially (in America) the Boston Symphony, the Tanglewood Festival Orchestra, and the National Symphony. From 1948 through 1979 he was a semi-frequent guest conductor of The Philadelphia Orchestra, in a series of concerts that began with a subscription performance鈥攊n which Bernstein performed the Ravel G-major Concerto conducting from the keyboard鈥攁nd culminated with Mahler鈥檚 Ninth Symphony in August 1979 at the Mann Center.

The Orchestra鈥檚 season also includes a series of intelligent combinations of Bernstein鈥檚 music with that of other composers: His 鈥淎ge of Anxiety鈥� Symphony appears on a program with other works focused on angst and self-doubt (Robert Schumann鈥檚 Fourth Symphony and Richard Strauss鈥檚 Don Quixote), and the Chichester Psalms are paired with Tod Machover鈥檚 Philadelphia Voices, a 鈥渃rowd-sourced鈥� work that forms part of the Orchestra鈥檚 Community Commissions initiative. Both of the latter works, somewhat like the Mass, reveal something of the all-encompassing world-view that Bernstein helped move forward, and which American composers today continue to strive toward.

In fact one of Bernstein鈥檚 most enduring legacies may be his role in breaking down barriers between popular and 鈥渉igh鈥� music鈥攂etween gritty American populism and the powerful influences of the European canon. 鈥淗is love affair with Europe and his sensitivity to his Russian and Jewish roots are never far from his lyrical expressivity,鈥� writes the conductor and critic John Mauceri, 鈥渨ith its fragile sense of optimism, its loneliness, its humor, and its demand for acceptance. All of this is wrapped in the rhythmic propulsion of a great American urban landscape.鈥�

鈥擯aul Horsley is performing arts editor of the Independent in Kansas City and writes for several publications nationwide. During the 1990s he was program annotator and musicologist for The Philadelphia Orchestra and subsequently served as music and dance critic for the Kansas City Star.